Saturday, May 2, 2015

The Heart of the Amish: Life Lessons on Peacemaking and the Power of Forgiveness, by Suzanne Woods Fisher

Title: The Heart of the Amish: Life Lessons on Peacemaking and the Power of Forgiveness

Author: Suzanne Woods Fisher

Publisher: Revell

Date: May 5, 2015

Paperback: 192 pages

About the Book
We have all been hurt and we all have someone we need to forgive. But
sometimes it's hard to let go of our hurt and anger in order to truly
forgive and move on.

For the Amish, forgiving others in order to
live at peace is woven into the very fabric of their faith. From daily
annoyances to heartbreaking tragedy, they exhibit an incredible capacity
for forgiveness that often baffles us. How do they do it? And how can
we have the same attitude and ability to forgive?

Through true
stories gathered from a variety of Amish communities, bestselling author
Suzanne Woods Fisher shows you how the Amish are able to release their
pain and desire for revenge, and live at peace with others. Her
in-depth, personal research uncovers the astounding yet fundamental way
the Amish can forgive anyone from the angry customer at the grocery
store to the shooter at Nickel Mines. You'll learn how to invite God
into your story, apply lessons from the Amish to your own circumstances, and find the freedom that comes with true forgiveness.

My Take
I love Amish proverbs. I pretty much love everything about the Amish (after having my daughter, I wanted to move to one of their communities to raise her), but one thing I have to say is that they have really great proverbs and life learning lessons. In this book Suzanne Woods Fisher, takes you on a journey through the lives of different people and shows you how you can forgive and be at peace with yourself. Not all of the stories happen to Amish people, but they are linked to them in some sort of way. At the beginning of each story, is an Amish proverb. After that, the author goes into the story that tells of one and their means of forgiveness. At the end of each story is a reflection where she asks questions of the reader. I really enjoyed this part. I felt like it helped me get more involved with the stories and helped me think about my life and certain situations that I have been in. At the end of each reflection is a "plain truth". This section gives us some background on the Amish, Mennonites, or Hutterites.

The book is a really great one to read and ponder over. I even read them to my daughter and asked her some of the questions. It was interesting to see her think about some of the situations she and her friends have been in and also whether it would be easy for her to forgive if she was put in some of these situations.

I think that everyone should get a copy of this book and read it. I know I found it very beneficial. And like I stated before, I love Amish proverbs and the book is filled with them. My daughter even found some that she liked. So yes, this book is for both the young and the old.

About the Author

Suzanne Woods Fisher is the bestselling author of Amish Peace and Amish Proverbs, as well as many novels about the Amish, including
the Lancaster County Secrets series, the Stoney Ridge Seasons series,
and The Inn at Eagle Hill series. She is also the coauthor of an Amish
children's series, The Adventures of Lily Lapp. Suzanne is a Carol Award
winner for The Search, a Carol Award finalist for The Choice, and a Christy Award finalist for The Waiting. She is also a columnist for Christian Post and Cooking & Such magazines. She lives in California. Learn more at www.suzannewoodsfisher.com and follow Suzanne on Twitter @suzannewfisher.

This complimentary book was given to me from Revell for my honest review.